Sherlock Holmes: The Master Detective is the latest VR adaptation of the iconic detective, delivering uneven investigations in Early Access.

No stranger to video game adaptations, Arthur Conan Doyle’s legendary detective has seen his fair share of reimaginings, from a young amateur grappling with the supernatural in Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened to the immersive theater online co-op seen in Sherlock Holmes: The Case of the Hung Parliament. Each iteration hones in on a different aspect of the character that, done well, is interesting in its own right. Out now on Early Access, Sherlock Holmes: The Master Detective is an uneven portrayal of the character, even if there is an entertaining core gameplay at the heart of it.

Starting in the famous 221B Baker Street apartment, a woman bursts through the door clamoring for help: a man has died in mysterious circumstances. Before leaving, you are allowed to rummage through the place. Sherlockians will find his previous exploits scattered around the furniture. Picking up files from his old cases like The Hound of the Baskervilles makes the seasoned investigator mutter a few words about how it ended in such a tragic way. An out-of-place Meta Quest 3 box earns the description of being “a lens into countless realities,” signaling that the story is developing in the current era.

A modern-day Sherlock Holmes has been done before, most notably in the famous 2010 BBC series with Benedict Cumberbatch. This time around, he is brought up to speed with innovative tools to help with his sleuthing. This version of the character is armed with a magnifying glass, a chemical analyzer, and a fingerprint scanner. After finding and packing them in a slick toolbox, one last tutorial reveals itself as the focus. Much like classic point-and-click adventures, Sherlock Holmes: The Master Detective asks you to find hidden objects in a specific area.

Leaving the apartment only to find the crime scene is just down the street, it is relatively surprising that you are allowed to explore the short but shady alleyways of London. Graphically, it is your usual Quest 3 slightly cartoony look, but the music and attention to detail are appreciated. Walking by a record store, for instance, lets you listen to the sound of a vinyl emanating from a record player. A souvenir shop showing Holmes’ own escapades shudders amusingly when grabbed. Lastly, a red telephone box ringing close to the mansion where the crime happened whispers to Sherlock that there is more than meets the eye in this case.

There are currently only two cases available to play. One in a lavish residence, the other in some shadowy docks, the way they unfold is rather straightforward: question the suspects, find the correct items in determined areas, and accuse the guilty party of the murder. As mentioned, finding objects is the main course, such as keys, torn documents, or pieces to grander puzzles in a sea of everyday items.

Other than object finding, light puzzles like reconstructing torn photographs and moving pieces to fit a painting are a welcome change of pace. My personal favorite was using the modern tools at hand: carefully inspecting a corpse's markings and accessories worn with the magnifying glass or analyzing a cup with the fingerprint scanner felt more akin to detective work.

Of course, like any other respectable whodunit, there is an overarching plot of a secret society with paranormal overtones. Because there are only two episodes so far, it ends on a cliffhanger that still has no answer. At the time of writing, the developer has not given a concrete timeline of when new updates will drop, so I would recommend entering this mystery with caution. I would personally be devastated if they did not follow through with the enticing setup.

As an Early Access release, it is understandable when only certain options are offered or shortcuts are taken, but in this case they felt like they detracted from the experience. The only way to move is by teleporting and snap turning, with no smooth turning or walking to speak of. What stood out like a sore thumb, though, was the use of generative AI. The voice acting is wooden, and the sound quality is blown out. Sherlock’s accent itself, jumping from American to British as the chapters changed, was jarring to say the least. Using AI-generated images can be considered harmless, as the clue-finding is where it's at, but it is still there.

Sherlock Holmes: The Master Detective is a promising title with considerable drawbacks. The atmosphere is so well recreated that even in its modern setting, it feels attuned to the iconic tales from which it originated. Emphasizing object searching, it is a relaxing experience that fans of point-and-click mysteries will enjoy. While the lack of constant communication regarding future support from the developers is alarming, the current offering is a middling pastime.

Sherlock Holmes: The Master Detective is out now in Early Access for Meta Quest 3/3S.

Now available in its 1.0 version, The Pirate: Republic of Nassau is greater than the sum of its parts, offering a myriad of options to fulfill the pirate fantasy.

In July 2025, I wrote an impressions piece of The Pirate: Republic of Nassau for UploadVR. While I was initially impressed with what was on offer, the potential for more content, including melee combat and multiplayer, led me to believe it had a promising future. Having just debuted its 1.0 version, I returned to this pirate fantasy in hopes of seeing if my prediction was correct. I can confidently say it was better than the sum of its parts.

To not repeat myself, I will briefly touch upon what I expounded on in my initial thoughts and focus on what is brand new. The Pirate: Republic of Nassau is light on narrative, instead opting to give players a slew of activities to fund your newly founded pirate republic on Nassau during the Golden Age of Piracy. Equipped with nothing more than a sloop and a skeleton crew, the sole objective is to grow your empire by recruiting historical pirates such as Blackbeard and Anne Bonny by defeating them in naval battle first.

Your initial vessel being rather unfit against these legends, the only sensible choice is to improve your ship with hard-earned gold. Nassau itself will generate money as you build the town, but in the modest beginning, doing lowly work is the way to go. Looting crates from fallen ships, treasure diving, and clashing at sea against rival ships, among the novel options, are the only path forward. With your work cut out for you, it is effortless for time to slip by once you get a hold of the game's mechanics.

Not many changes in this 1.0 version positively impact the moment-to-moment gameplay, but improvements do exist. In the Early Access version, you could only fast travel from one port to another from the map in your cabin. This removed any wonder because the only way to discover new ports was by paying either the Merchant's Guild or the tavern to hear rumors from far-off places. Now, there is an option to visually move your small ship through the map and discover uncharted territories in the process. New ports in the Caribbean mean new vendors, merchants, and quests, and finding out about them in no particular order instills a sense of free will when playing.

The clearest improvement over the initial release is the crisper visuals, especially inside the cabin. Whereas it formerly looked blurry and unfocused, now the cabin looks pristine in comparison. As the place where players strategize and choose where to embark upon next, it’s a logical rework. Other areas, such as the ship’s deck, nearby islands when sailing, and the new explorable areas on foot, still show muddy textures.

A handy spyglass lying on your right-hand side when aboard the ship goes further into feeling like a captain. Having to close one eye when looking at an enemy ship at a distance evokes the Jack Sparrow films. Amidst all the quality-of-life changes, the highlight is the time boost, bar none. The ability to sail faster is a game changer. When the wind was against the sails before this helpful mechanic, the vessel would grind to a halt. Now, turning on fast forward with the click of a button speeds things up when needing to sail to a lighthouse catch crates of sugar, or engage in naval battle, significantly improving the experience.

A game like The Pirate: Republic of Nassau should be judged by its full package, not each element individually. That is why sea shanties seem like an inconspicuous addition that would fade into the background if the tunes were not as catchy as they are. Developer Home Net Games is no stranger to pirate-themed games, with The Pirate: Caribbean Hunt dating back ten years. This experience is evidenced in the musical choices. Wildly fun rhymes of tall tales sung by gravelly voices sound right at home when ringing a bell on your ship's deck or when visiting taverns.

One of my most eagerly anticipated features, cave exploration, added damp, pitch-black areas hidden deep within some islands. Accessible through hearing rumors in taverns, this is a refreshing change-up to standing in your ship all the time, as no ports can be explored on foot. I would appreciate seeing that in a future update, as the developer pledged to continue supporting this pirate simulator. But I digress.

The caverns themselves—apparently full of treasure—leave much to be desired, only truly displaying corridor after corridor of skeleton bones, rats, and sparse gold pouches. Random small spiders hanging from stalactites creep up in surprising ways, so that at least excites in an otherwise uneventful incursion. For those with arachnophobia, these can also be entirely removed in the settings. Making the cave double the size in hopes of finding more loot is also an option.

Feeling isolated is a strong emotion recreated in these tunnels. Always holding a torch to guide you in the dark severely increases the eerie atmosphere. Bats, the hollow echoes, and water dropping do their best to convince the mind that you are in fact spelunking. Because the only true danger faced exploring these desolate caves is falling to your death, it ends up being a rather introspective activity.

A second land-based foray is exploring jungles to exact revenge on another pirate captain who stole from you. Set in the middle of the day, the suspiciously hallway-shaped islands focus more on melee combat as there is not much in the way of exploration. The ability to crouch and try to be stealthy in the process of approaching enemy camps is an option, with twigs littered around that can reveal your location to enemies and ruin the surprise.

Once you get rid of said foes, it does not feel particularly rewarding to explore every nook and cranny, because there is not much to see. Occasional gold pouches will be left by corpses or near campsites, but other types of items like cannonballs, planks, or oil are nowhere to be seen. This makes the exploration limiting, resulting in a very straightforward experience that is only salvageable by the combat, which in and of itself is a mixed bag.

The combat feels undercooked, with collisions being a notable hit or miss. Armed to the teeth with a sword, a hatchet, bombs that explode on contact with campfires, and three daggers on your chest, no foe stands a chance. That said, while fighting the pirate captain, who naturally donned the flashier clothes, his attacks did not register from my perspective when gesturing my sword swings, so a baffling “You lost. Try Again?” message was deflating. A video game that tries to do too much might end up not doing everything well, and that seems to be the case here.

Ultimately, as a diversion taking away from the commerce and naval combat, it serves as a nice complement, but not the main course. On my second try with the boss, I threw a hatchet at his head before he could get close, and he collapsed right then and there. I earned a good bit of gold coins from a chest nearby in that incursion that would have taken me longer otherwise. At least that was satisfying.

The final new mode is multiplayer. PvE, PvP, and Port Attack are the possible sessions prospective players can choose. Deciding how many players—or bots—can enter, the tier of both your and your enemy's ship, and if Auto-Aim should be allowed or not are some variables to fiddle with. Playing the entire campaign with friends sounded like a more enticing idea, but it certainly would be a lot more complex than the currently available skirmishes at sea.

There is no one defining aspect of The Pirate: Republic of Nassau that stands out above the rest. It is every element working in tandem that makes it a worthwhile golden age of piracy fantasy. A veritable time sink, the pleasant hands-on activities to expand your criminal empire, from wreck diving to engaging in spontaneous naval combat, hark back to the best moments of Assassin's Creed: Black Flag. The newly added tasks, such as exploring gloomy caves and fighting buccaneers, while not spectacular, add a sense of variety to easily spend several hours in. The result is a worthwhile endeavor that those intrigued by the pirate's life should set sail for.

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